


Lines in the Sand

by dragonflybeach



Category: Supernatural, Supernatural RPF
Genre: Angst, J2 Reversebang Entry, M/M, Minor Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-19
Updated: 2016-12-19
Packaged: 2018-09-09 19:47:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8909677
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dragonflybeach/pseuds/dragonflybeach
Summary: Jensen is a serious, professional actor who intends to maintain a serious, professional relationship with his new co-star. Serious and professional is easier said than done when your new co-star falls somewhere between giant two legged puppy and five year old on a sugar binge.Artwork by milly_gal





	

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: This was a pinch hit, so it was a bit crunched on time. Some liberties have been taken with dates and events. Thank you so much to the amazing milly_gal for her gorgeous artwork, and for her infinite patience!

 

The first time they met, sitting in the little waiting room at their callback auditions, they honestly thought they were competing for the same part.  
  
Jensen had been in the week before to audition as Sam, and this kid, Jared somebody who had been on the Gilmore Girls, had too.  
  
The info on the role said they were looking for a college student, and straight up, this Jared kid looked more the part than Jensen did. He had too-long shaggy hair, a well-worn Abercrombie hoodie, and a lanky frame with huge hands and feet that he didn't seem to have quite grown into yet.  
  
Jensen knew that if he really nailed the audition, the hair and makeup and wardrobe people could go a long way toward making him look younger, but honestly, he was worried. After all, he had played a football coach previously, someone who had apparently _finished_ college, so he kind of hoped the casting people hadn't seen Smallville, hadn't set him as _older_ in their minds.  
  
They were both nervous. Jensen could barely talk but Jared wouldn't shut up, so despite himself, Jensen found himself in a friendly conversation about football, the weather in Texas, and how Jared had been double-dog-dared to paint an Olsen twin's toenails by the time they had been called into the big room to face The Powers That Be.  
  
A few long minutes later, they learned that Jared had actually gotten the part Jensen wanted, but Jensen had been cast in the other lead role.  
  
Jensen was a little disappointed that he didn't get the part he wanted, a little more relieved that he had a part, period, so the rent would get paid next month, and somewhat comforted that the creator, producer, and director were all completely certain that he would make the perfect Dean to Jared's Sam.  
  
Jared was thrilled, throwing his arms around Jensen in a bear hug and gushing about how awesome this was going to be.  
  
Jensen knew right away that he was going to have to draw a line here. Jared was obviously young and overly enthusiastic. It would be up to Jensen to set him straight on reality. Not all pilots become shows, co-stars are not your friends, and working on set is easier if everyone remains professional and pragmatic about the situation.  
  
Professional and pragmatic are easier said than done when your co-star is a giant two-legged Golden Retriever puppy. Despite the fact he slurps on gummy worms while getting his hair and makeup and leaves sticky fingerprints on the props, no one can stay mad at him for more than a minute. He manages to "cute" his way out of trouble every time.  
  
He also seemed to be quite determined to become Jensen's BFF. They haven't even finished shooting the pilot yet, much less has it been picked up, but every time the director calls cut, Jared is following Jensen around like the overgrown puppy he is, wanting to talk or hang out or something.  
  
All of which sometimes makes it difficult to remember that Jensen should be keeping his professional differences. Jared is a likable kid.  
  
Jensen tried politely telling him that they should be prepared for reality. Probably less than half of the pilots filmed ever become shows.  
  
Significantly fewer than that ever actually become popular shows and last longer than a few episodes or a season. There is a real likelihood that once they finish filming this pilot, they may never see one another again.

  
Jared looks crushed. "You don't really believe that, do you? I mean, I think this would be a really good show, and there's nothing else like it on tv."  
  
Jensen sighed, because he really didn't mean to dash the kid's dreams. "I think it's a good premise," he admits. "And it has the potential to become something unique if it gets picked up. But you never know what's going on with the networks until someone calls and says they want it. I did a pilot last year that I thought would be a great show. Nobody picked it up. But someone picked up Manimal, so who knows."  
  
"Manimal?" Jared asked.  
  
Jensen managed not to roll his eyes, because seriously, this was a kid who probably didn't grow up with a parent in the business. "Manimal was considered one of the worst tv shows of all time. It was about a guy who was a shapeshifter and turned into an animal to help solve crimes. Early 80's, horrible special effects, starring a British soap opera actor, ripped off pretty much every other show on tv at the time."  
  
"Oh." Jared nodded. "But, I mean, we've got CG, which they didn't have back then, and two good looking guys in a badass car."  
  
The kid was looking so much like a puppy at the moment Jensen half expected him to start wagging his tail.  
  
"Yeah, Jared, we do." Jensen agreed.  
  
A huge grin broke over Jared's face. "Cool. We've got about 40 minutes before they're going to be ready for us back on set. You wanna get something to eat?"  
  
Jensen did roll his eyes that time. "Didn't you just eat about half an hour ago?"  
  
Jared shrugged and blushed. "Yeah."  
  
"Lead on." Jensen gestured toward the craft tent.  
  
Jared set off happily, and Jensen followed him, muttering to himself about growing boys.

 

 

Except, Jensen found out, growing boy turned out to be accurate.  
  
Supernatural did get picked up, rather quickly at that, but by the time they came back to shoot the next episode, Jared had actually gotten taller.  
  
Jensen had the niggling feeling that something was different, but didn't realize what it was until the director was lining up a shot and called out "Didn't you two used to be the same height?"  
  
Size was pretty much the only thing different about Jared, who had shown up with five pounds of gummy worms and hugged nearly everyone on the set.  
  
They were in a huge time crunch, because the network wanted a full season and wanted to start the show in the fall, despite the call that it was picked up not coming until July.  
  
That meant long days filming, with photo shoots for promos and press interviews planned on the weekends and between shooting. The photo shoots were fine, because there were stylists and network execs all fussing and fretting and arguing over who should hold which gun in the next shot.  
  
The interviews were another story. Jensen had always hated doing press to begin with. But now, when Jared showed up looking like he had been dressed by a color-blind hobo and proceeded to tell a reporter about being bee stung on the ass while filming, Jensen wondered how fired he would be if he asked to not do interviews with Jared.  
  
Everyone's nerves were frazzled within a month, except Jared's of course. He still bounced around the set like a giant five-year-old on a sugar buzz. He also still chased Jensen around, begging for attention, and didn't even seem upset that Jensen had barely acknowledged the twice weekly texts from Jared between the filming of the first and second episodes.  
  
It all came to a head the day they reported to start filming the fourth episode.  
  
Word had come down that morning from high on the food chain that the execs decided to move the Hookman episode they had just finished to later in the season. That meant they needed to film another episode to replace it, because at this rate they would run out of episodes before the fall mini-hiatus. Bob Singer gave what was intended to be a pep talk, but stressed the importance of getting as many scenes done in one take as possible, because less time to film meant less room for mistakes. As a result, the network was bringing in Kim Manners, a director known for getting the best camera angles the first time.  
  
Of course, that morning everything went wrong.  
  
One of the cameras malfunctioned. A piece of equipment shifted when the wind blew and moved into the shot. After nearly half an hour of setting up a shot, a cloud cover rolled in and ruined the lighting.  
  
Jensen, pressuring himself to nail every scene on the first take, blew the same line three times.  
  
The break for lunch couldn't come soon enough. By the time it was announced, everyone's nerves were shot.  
  
Everyone's except Jared, of course.  
  
Jared followed Jensen back to the trailers, babbling on about his usual nonsense, and it was just too much.

  
"Jared!" Jensen whirled around and shouted as close to his co-star's face as he could get without standing on his tiptoes, because the kid had managed to grow another inch since filming started and wasn't that just a fucking kicker. "I am not your brother in real life! I am not your best friend! We work together on the same tv show! That's it! Now leave me the fuck alone!"  
  
Jensen turned back around and stomped to his trailer without looking to see if Jared followed.  
  
About fifteen minutes later, there was a knock at the door. Jensen huffed and muttered to himself that if it was Jared he was going to kill the kid.  
  
It wasn't. It was Kim Manners.  
  
"Mind if I talk to you for a minute?" he asked.  
  
Jensen opened the door wider, inviting the man in.  
  
"Look," the director began. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, and I don't mean to interfere. But I need to know now if there's a problem with you and your co-star. Because if we're wasting everyone's time on a show that's not going anywhere, then we might as well pull the plug now."  
  
Jensen was stunned. "What do you mean?"  
  
"I heard you shouting at Jared. The whole crew heard you shouting at Jared. Look, you have no idea what it was like working on the X Files after David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson had their falling out. They hated each other. And it made everyone on the set miserable. The place was so tense it felt like the air was going to shatter from the tension. If that's what we have here, then I'm going to let the network know. But I would really hate to think that, because part of what sold the network on this show was the chemistry that you and Jared have together. It's organic. You can't teach it, and you can't fake it. It's every showrunner's wet dream. If Supernatural was on cable, they would have re-written the show with the two of you as stepbrothers or something so you could end up lovers. If you and Jared could learn to harness that chemistry, Supernatural could be a hit show and be around five years or more. It could honestly make the two of you household names."  
  
"I ... " Jensen shook his head. "I don't hate the kid. It's just that. He's a kid. He bounces around here like a puppy or something ... "  
  
"I was thinking more like a clumsy moose." Kim shrugged.  
  
"Okay, I could see that." Jensen agreed. "But he's not professional. He eats gummy worms on set and gets everything sticky! He tells inappropriate stories in interviews and could we _please_ get a stylist to dress him before he shows up at another media event wearing an outfit the Salvation Army would probably throw away?"  
  
Kim snickered. "You know what I see?"  
  
Jensen shook his head.  
  
"First of all - That kid idolizes you." Kim said, folding his arms and piercing Jensen with a look. "He might be Number One on the call sheet, but he's looking to your lead on how to approach the scene. I know he's probably a bit much sometimes, but I really think he means well. Maybe he just needs a mentor to show him the ropes. To be honest, I think he probably has at least a man crush on you, if not a full-fledged crush. And secondly - being professional on set doesn't mean you can't be friends with the people you work with. David Hasselhoff is the ultimate professional on set. He comes in, films his scenes, speaks his lines, boom, print it, done. He's also an asshole who barely speaks to anyone. You don’t strike me as that type of person. I really think you could make some amazing friendships if you would open yourself up. If you want Supernatural to last, treat people like you're glad to see them, and learn to work with Jared. You said it yourself. He's a kid. Kids need to be raised."  
  
"You're right." Jensen nodded. "I'll go apologize to him."  
  
"We're all stressed, and I understand that." Kim said, reaching for the door. "But if we want this show to last, we've got to stick together, and some lightheartedness will help. Jared is good for that. We just need to coach and mentor him a bit as far as the rest of it goes. We spend way too much time with each other not to enjoy each others' company. Now. We've got about two hours and ten minutes until I'm going to need you two back on set. I'm going to see if I can call somebody to bring in some ice cream or something this afternoon."  
  
With that, the director left, closing the door behind him.  
  
Jensen spent a good five minutes going over his apology in his head before walking to the trailer next door. He knocked on the door, but no one answered for a long moment, so he knocked again.  
  
"Just go away, Jensen." Came a small voice from the other side of the door.  
  
"Jared." Jensen shoved his hand through his hair. "Look, man. I'm sorry. Open the door so we can talk about it, please?"  
  
There was a moment of silence, then a loud sniff, before the door opened.  
  
Jared's face was red and blotchy, his shirt sleeves wet and streaked with snot.  
  
The kid had been crying.  
  
Not the pretty crying actors do on set, but full on boo-hoo sobbing.  
  
Jensen immediately concluded that someone had died, or maybe they had announced they were going to stop making gummy worms.  
  
"What's wrong?" Jensen frowned, pushing his way in.  
  
"You hate me!" Jared whined, and started crying again.  
  
"What?" Jensen asked, honestly shocked for a moment. "No, I don't hate you."  
  
"Just go away, Jensen." Jared shook his head. "It's just a bad day. We’re all having a bad day. I'll get myself under control and come back to the set."  
  
"Jared, just ..." Jensen sighed. "Sit down for a minute, okay?"  
  
Jared sat, so Jensen grabbed a bottle of water and a handful of toilet paper, as it appeared the kid didn't have any actual tissues. He handed both to Jared, then sat on the end of the couch, waiting while Jared wiped his eyes and drank half the water.  
  
"Look, I came to apologize for yelling at you. I was kinda stressed out and mad at myself for blowing my lines. I took it out on you and that wasn't fair because it wasn't your fault." Jensen said.  
  
"But you ... you said you weren't my friend or my brother in real life, we were just co-workers and to leave you alone." Jared reminded him.  
  
Jensen sighed again. "I know, and I shouldn't have said that to you. I've been trying to keep things between us strictly business because I've learned the hard way that when you try to be friends with your co-stars, a lot of them are smiling to your face while looking for a spot to stab you in the back."  
  
"I would never do that." Jared vowed with a sniff.  
  
"I know." Jensen nodded.  
  
"So can we be friends?" Jared asked in a small voice.  
  
"Yeah, kid, we can be friends." Jensen said.  
  
Jared hugged him, and Jensen didn't complain about snot or gummy worm sticky fingers.

Once Jensen adopted Kim's viewpoint, things got a lot easier.  
  
It was kind of flattering to have your co-star as one of your biggest fans, especially when he asked your input on approaching a scene, and gushed about how awesome you were in front of the guest stars.  
  
The more Jensen relaxed around Jared, the more hanging out with Jared just felt natural and right. It was if they had been friends for years. Jensen actually found himself feeling more comfortable with Jared and telling Jared things he had never shared with people he had known for much longer.  
  
He had thought it would be awkward to talk to Jared about the way he dressed, but it turned out to be one of their easier conversations.  
  
Jared loved to ask Jensen about his previous jobs, and they got talking about modelling.  
  
Jared, even though he came across as a bumbling hyperactive child, was in fact extremely intelligent and eager to learn anything and everything.  
  
So Jared asked questions about aspects of modelling that Jensen had never considered, and it opened the door for Jensen to ask him a question.  
  
"Have you ever studied visual marketing?"  
  
"No." Jared shook his head, looking curious.  
  
"You understand the concept, right?" Jensen pressed. "That how you arrange the item you're trying to sell, what you put around it, the background and props and all that present the whole picture as much or more than the lighting and the angle of the photograph? There's a whole psychology to it. Like when we do the promo pictures for the show, they have Sam and Dean wearing scuffed boots and holding weapons, not wearing Brooks Brothers wingtips and holding Waterford crystal."  
  
"Right." Jared agreed, obviously understanding but wondering where Jensen was going with the idea.  
  
"I think we should use it to sell the show." Jensen shrugged.  
  
"But we have a whole department for that stuff." Jared waved a hand in the vague direction of the set.  
  
"For studio stuff, yeah." Jensen said. "But I'm talking about the two of us. I studied this crap. Really. If we go to interviews wearing outfits that complement each other, if we look like a matched set, it will subliminally reinforce the idea of the two of us as a duo. That's exactly what we want if we're trying to promote, well, not really a buddy show, but you get the idea."  
  
"Yeah." Jared nodded, completely agreeing.  
  
So that was how Jensen ended up taking Jared shopping.  
  
The discussion of what was appropriate to talk about in interviews actually never happened.  
  
Jensen realized that everyone liked overgrown bumbling puppy Jared. The critics called him things like "refreshingly candid" and the fans of the show seemed divided over whether they wanted to wrap him in a blanket and feed him cookies or just fuck him senseless.  
  
And Jared, since he was pretty smart after all, started picking up on Jensen's subtle cues when an interview wasn't going well and reining himself in, so Jensen never actually had to coach him on how to conduct himself.  
Kim Manners just smiled when he saw them hanging out as if he were part of some great inside joke.  
  
It was only two weeks later that Jared asked Jensen what time he was flying back from LA this weekend.

"You realize you're going to miss the Cowboys' season opener, right?" Jared asked with a creepy imitation of what he called the Eyebrow of Disappointment when Jensen did it.  
  
"Damn." was Jensen's only answer.  
  
"We don't _have_ to fly to LA every weekend." Jared shrugged. "We could hang out here and watch the game."  
  
"I'll buy the beer but I am not buying snacks for your always starving ass." Jensen grinned.  
  
"It better be good beer." Jared said with as much fake seriousness as he could. "No Pabst Blue Ribbon or cheap shit like that."  
  
That was the point that Jared and Jensen became J2 to the crew, and to a lesser extent, to their friends and families. From then on, they spent more weekends together in Vancouver than they did separately anywhere else with anyone else.

The week before the first episode aired, the two of them went out after shooting one night to have a beer and watch a hockey game. (“We’re in _Canada_. We have to start watching hockey. It’s like a law or something.” Jared had explained in his overgrown five-year-old way.)  
  
There was some trouble at the bar, some rowdy drunks fighting, so Jensen suggested they leave before they got into the middle of something they would get in trouble with the network for.  
  
As they walked out of the front door of the bar, a girl who was with the group that had just been thrown out pointed at Jensen and said something about “that guy.”  
  
The next thing Jensen knew, three hundred pounds of drunk redneck were in his face.  
  
Thankfully, he had filmed so many fight scenes over the years it came as second nature to block the fist that came at his nose.  
  
Before he could blink, the fight was on, with at least six men all trying to fight him.  
  
The hand pulling on his shoulder was suddenly ripped away, and from the corner of his eye, he saw one of the attackers hit the ground.  
  
He turned to see something he had never thought he would witness – Jared furious.  
  
Another attacker took Jared’s huge left foot to the gut, while a third got a fist to the face that struck with a satisfying crunch.  
  
“Come on, let’s get out of here!” Jensen shouted to his co-star.  
  
“Go!” Jared yelled in response.  
  
Jensen ran about forty yards before he realized he didn’t hear another set of footsteps.  
  
He turned to find that two of the men they had knocked down had gotten back up, and Jared was now trying to fight five people by himself.  
  
“Dammit Jared!” he said, although Jared obviously couldn’t hear him.  
  
He ran back to the fight, catching two of the opponents with one roundhouse kick. Jared kicked another in the chest while hitting a second in the face with an elbow.  
  
There was only one attacker still standing at that point, so Jensen grabbed Jared’s shirt, ripping it in the process, and pulled him away from the scene.  
  
“We gotta go before the cops get here and we get in trouble with the network.” Jensen urged.  
  
They made it to Jensen’s car and got inside with the door locked before Jensen noticed that Jared was cradling his hand against his chest.  
  
“Let me see.” He ordered.  
  
Jared held out his hand, which was already significantly swollen and starting to turn purple.  
  
“I think it’s broken.” Jared confirmed.  
  
“All right, hospital it is.” Jensen said, shaking his head.  
  
“Look, just drop me off.” Jared offered. “I’ll tell them I got in a fight. The network doesn’t even have to know you were there.”  
  
Jensen shook his head as he started the ignition. “Not going to happen, kid. You hurt it trying to save my ass. I’ll call the network myself.”  
  
At the hospital, the triage nurse took one look at Jared’s hand and sent them back to x-ray. The doctor came in shortly to confirm that Jared’s hand was broken, with one slightly displaced fracture, so it would need to be set.

  
First, however, there was an officer outside who would like to speak to them for a moment.  
  
Jared and Jensen exchanged looks before agreeing to see the police.  
  
The officer just spoke to them briefly, said that the woman who inadvertently started the fight had meant that she recognized Jensen from seeing him on tv, but her companion thought she meant he was one the group they had been fighting with.  
  
Jared and Jensen were not in trouble, as they had been defending themselves, but he did ask if they wanted to press charges against any of the others.  
  
They declined, thinking the less publicity for the network, the better.  
  
Another doctor came in to administer anesthetic so they could set Jared’s hand.  
  
“The orthopedic surgeon will be back to set it when then meds have had time to kick in.” He told them with a wave at the door.  
  
One of the nurses came in with a portable x-ray machine and materials for a splint.  
  
“He’ll be a bit loopy in a few minutes.” She told Jensen with a wink.  
  
It took another ten minutes or so before Jensen noticed that Jared’s pupils were wide and his eyes glazed.

  
“You all right, dude?” he asked.  
  
Jared looked up at him. “I’m sorry I got hurt and we’re going to get in trouble with the network.”  
  
“It’s okay.” Jensen shrugged. “We’ll just explain what happened. The police officer said it wasn’t our fault. We were defending ourselves.”  
  
“Are you mad at me?” Jared asked, sounding like a little kid.  
  
“No, I’m not mad at you.” Jensen shook his head. “You broke your hand trying to save me. Of course I’m not going to be mad at you.”  
  
“I don’t want you to be mad.” Jared continued. “I knew the first time I met you that you were going to be one of the most important people in my life. If you ever get mad at me, you have to tell me so I can fix it.”  
  
Jensen hesitated for a moment, knowing it was probably the meds talking, but momentarily unable to think of anything to say to diffuse the awkward moment.  
  
Fortunately, the doctor came in just then to set Jared’s hand, so he didn’t have to.  
  
Amazingly, the network wasn’t upset at all.  
  
In fact, they were thrilled, immediately planning the public relations spin about how Jared and Jensen were not only as tough as their characters, but also best friends in real life who saved each other in bar fights.  
  
Jared’s broken hand didn’t get written into the script, so there were some creative camera angles to hide his cast for a couple weeks until the doctor gave permission to take it off while shooting.  
  
Jared’s girlfriend insisted on flying up from LA as often as she could to take care of him. She was cute and sweet and funny, but Jensen missed getting to hang out with Jared, just the two of them.  
  
Jared seemed like he did too.  
  
[](http://ic.pics.livejournal.com/dragonflybeach/49631348/1519/1519_original.png)

By the time Jared’s hand was better, the holidays were upon them.  
  
Everyone in Vancouver and LA was having at least one party, so Jared and Jensen took each other along to many of them, and met most of each other’s friends and family.  
  
Jensen’s family loved Jared right away, and Jared’s mom hugged Jensen, telling him that Jared hadn’t stopped talking about him since August.  
  
Jared’s brother and especially his sister looked at Jensen speculatively several times, but never said whatever it was they were thinking.  
  
Jared gave Jensen his Christmas gift the day before they left for the holiday. Jared got him a PSP so they could play against each other during their downtimes during filming. Jensen had gotten Jared the new phone he wanted.  
  
Sera, one of the writers, teased them about their "couple gifts."  
  
The network gave them almost two full weeks off for Christmas. The days were strangely quiet without Jared around. Jensen found himself texting and calling Jared at least half a dozen times per day, and received as many or more than he sent.  
  
The first day back on set, Jared hugged Jensen for longer than should have been acceptable, but Jensen found himself not wanting to let go.  
  
They were back in LA barely a week later for an awards show, flying in at the last minute after filming most of the day. Jared's girlfriend was filming and couldn't make it. Jared didn't even go home. He just went to Jensen's house and got dressed there, blushingly admitting the reason he rarely wore ties was because he didn't know how to tie them.  
  
Jensen tied it for him, and had to admit that his co-star was a good-looking man.  
  
Jensen was always nervous before Red Carpet events, and even Jared was a little anxious about this one, so they had a couple shots before they went, toasting each other with a laughing "To liquid nerve pills!"  
  
During Jensen's interview that night, Jared pretended to try to kiss Jensen.  
  
Jensen played it off at the time, and chalked it up to Jared being tipsy, making a note to talk to him about it later.  
The next day, Bob Singer called them in.  
  
"So I hear there was some almost kissing last night." he said, direct and to the point.  
  
Jared blushed and stammered.  
  
Jensen nodded, embarrassed. "Yes sir, it was just ... playing around. It won't happen again, sir."  
  
"Don't tell me that!" Singer groaned.  
  
Jared and Jensen looked at each other and then at the director.  
  
"Social media has blown up." Singer told them. "The young female demographic of the fandom loved it. We've had a huge surge in hits on Hulu. I'm not going to ask you to do it again, but I will say that this kind of attention is what is going to help us get renewed for season 2."  
  
"Yes sir." Jared and Jensen both said before heading out to report to makeup.  
  
"So the powers that be want us to play Gay Chicken?" Jared asked.  
  
"Apparently." Jensen said with a shrug. "Gay Chicken it is."  
  
"All the Gay Chicken!" Jared decreed, pulling out a box of gummy worms from his jacket pocket.  
  
Jensen stole one before they got to the makeup trailer  
  
  
The game of Gay Chicken continued during the media interviews for the rest of the season.  
  
Jeff Morgan, back to film a few more episodes as Sam and Dean's dad, was included in a few of the late season interviews.  
  
Jared apparently extended Gay Chicken to include Jeff, calling him "my boyfriend" once.  
  
Jensen didn't really like it, but didn't say much, because after all, Jeff was only a guest star. He wouldn't be around much.  
  
  
Season one ended filming, but Jared and Jensen spent the next two weeks together doing media promotion in Europe.  
  
Without Jeff Morgan.  
  
When they got back to LA, Jensen was set to film a movie, while Jared was off to Texas for his brother's medical school graduation, and then travelling with his girlfriend Sandy and sister Megan.  
  
Jensen sent Jared's brother a check and a nice card, wishing him well.  
  
He got a thank you note back, telling him that he was more than welcome to come with Jared any time.  
  
  
  
Two weeks into Jared's trip, Jensen got an email one night.  
  
Jared's phone was apparently not compatible with the cell networks in China, so he couldn't call or text Jensen.  
  
Jared confessed that he had actually kicked around the idea of buying another phone to use while he was in Asia so he could talk to Jensen.  
  
"Megan won't stop giving me grief about it." he wrote. "She asked if I would have bought the phone to talk to Sandy. I told her it didn't matter because Sandy was here with me. Then she and Sandy got to talking and decided that I talk to you more than I talk to Sandy."  
  
"That's because you know who is important." Jensen joked.  
  
  
Life was very quiet for a month.  
  
That's probably how Jensen started dating Danneel.  
  
She was his co-star and romantic interest in the movie he filmed that summer. They had worked together before. She was funny, bold, and beautiful.  
  
And she teased him about how much he talked about Jared.  
  
  
Filming the second episode, they met Alona, who was going to play a recurring character.  
  
Her second day on the set, she asked "So do you two have threesomes with the co-stars, or do you just fuck each other?"  
  
Jared laughed it off, but Jensen wasn't entirely sure she was kidding.  
  
  
During the filming of the third episode, Jared broke his wrist.  
  
He had sprained it over the summer, but while filming a fight scene, he fell and landed on it wrong, and broke it.  
  
There were a couple scenes left to film for the episode, and of course they were filmed out of order, so for continuity sake, Jared couldn't have a cast.  
  
He wore a brace for a few days, mostly taking it off to film.  
  
At the end of each day, Jensen would help Jared to his trailer to ice his wrist, and massaged his shoulders and back to help take his mind off the pain.  
  
Unfortunately, when Jared went back to the doctor to have it checked, the wrist was not healing well and the doctor recommended surgery.  
  
They filmed most of the next episode, writing in a lame scene of Sam getting his wrist broken by a ghost, but this time it was obvious that the injury was going to have to be worked into the show.  
  
The set was shut down for two weeks due to Jared's surgery, which didn't make the network happy.  
  
Jared's mom and Sandy flew up for the surgery. The hospital rules said that only two people were allowed to see him in the recovery room, but the rules were bent because Jensen refused to be left out.  
  
Jared's mom stayed for a week, and Sandy stayed most of the two weeks. Toward the middle of the second week, Jensen invited Danneel up to visit. He then suggested the two girls spend some time together, get Sandy out of the apartment after spending so much time having to take care of Jared's whiny ass.  
  
Sandy told him that he was a great friend to stay with Jared and give her a break, but Danneel narrowed her eyes and silently told him that she was doing him a favor by not calling him out on his bullshit.  
  
  
  
One of the writers, Sera Gamble, did an interview in which she called Supernatural "the epic love story of Sam and Dean". In response, Jared and Jensen upped their Gay Chicken game another notch.  
  
  
The guys spent most of their holidays together again, including dinner with each other's families.

  
Jared's sister pointed out that Jared's dogs liked Jensen more than they liked Sandy.  
  
[](http://ic.pics.livejournal.com/dragonflybeach/49631348/1611/1611_original.jpg)  
  
Life settled into a routine in January. Jared and Jensen filmed during the week and hung out after work. Clothes and spare toothbrushes ended up being left at each other's apartments because sometimes they just ended up sleeping at whichever apartment they were at. Usually it was Jared's place because of the dogs.  
  
On weekends, they frequently went back to LA, where as often as not, they still ended up at each other's place. Sometimes they stayed in Vancouver, and sometimes the girlfriends came to visit. Life was the most comfortable Jensen could ever remember.  
  
  
By the time filming wrapped for the second season, the word had not officially come down from the network, but everyone from Kripke down the food chain was pretty certain they were getting picked up for season three.  
  
Jared was going to film a movie about Thomas Kincade, for which Jensen teased him mercilessly, and hosting some horror version of _Punk'd_ on MTV.  
  
Jensen was going to appear in a play version of _A Few Good Men_ and was going to Japan with Danneel. Jared spent days barking out "You can't handle the truth!"  
  
Despite saying that he was going to be too busy with his filming schedule and there was no way he could get to Texas, Jared did show up for the second night of Jensen's play.  
  
Jensen and Danneel had to change hotels in Japan because the first one didn't have public internet for him to be able to email Jared. Just like Jared's phone the previous year, Jensen's phone was not compatible with the cellular network in Asia.  
  
The night they left to fly back to LA, Danneel turned to Jensen.  
  
"You know, I really should say something about the fact that you bought gifts for Jared but not me." She said.  
  
"You bought your own souvenirs." Jensen replied, even though he was pretty sure that wasn't the right answer.  
  
"You bought him _pajamas_." Danneel raised an eyebrow.  
  
Just then, the taxi arrived to take them to the airport, and the rest of the conversation was shelved.  
  
  
This time it was Jensen who held onto Jared and didn't let go when they returned to Vancouver.  
  
  
Right after the start of the third season, Jared came to Jensen for a favor.  
  
"Help me buy a house. I mean, it looks like Supernatural might last a couple more seasons, and I'd like to have a place for the dogs to run."  
  
For the next month, Jared and Jensen spent their weekends, and occasionally evenings, looking at houses for Jared.  
  
Lauren, the actress who was going to play the new recurring character Bela, asked them didn't they think it was weird that Jensen was helping Jared pick out a house rather than Sandy.  
  
They didn't.  
  
  
They found the perfect house. It had a big fenced back yard for the dogs to run around, a cozy fireplace in the living room for cold winter nights, and a big rec room in the basement, which Jared intended to make into a man cave complete with pool table,  
  
Sandy loved it. She made a comment that it was just what she would have chosen if she had been involved in the decision. Jared wisely kept his mouth shut and avoided that argument.  
  
Jensen knew that Jared and Sandy had been together a long time, and it was only natural that Jared invited her to spend the first weekend in the house with him instead of Jensen.  
  
That didn't mean Jensen liked it.  
  
  
Sandy was cast as a guest star on the fifth episode.  
  
Jensen hadn't expected the usual easy camaraderie the three of them had off set, but the whole week was just awkward.  
  
Jared and Jensen were so used to hanging out on set and spending all their time together that it felt strange to include another person in their relationship.  
  
Jensen felt a tension from Sandy that he had never felt before.  
  
Jared spent the whole week seemingly caught between the two of them, until Jensen told him to spend some time with Sandy while she was here, and then it would be just the two of them again next week.  
  
Jared didn't say much, but Jensen could see how much more relaxed he was the following week.

Once Jared had the house, all of their friends and co-workers seemed to come to the conclusion that he was going to propose any time. Some of the female crew members (and one gossipy male) asked Jensen if Jared had bought the ring yet. Kripke joked at one of their meetings that it might be a good thing that it looked like the writers were going on strike because it would give Jared a chance to take Sandy on a nice romantic vacation.  
  
It wasn't that Jensen didn't like Sandy. He really did. And he would be a total dick if he didn't want Jared to be happy, because Jared was his best friend, and obviously Sandy made Jared happy.  
  
Jared didn't say anything about proposing, and Jensen didn't ask.  
  
  
The writers did go on strike the first week of November. There were several meetings with the powers that be, and the agreed plan was that they would film all the episodes already written by the end of December. Then if the strike went on, everyone would take an extra long Christmas break until they could all get back to work.  
  
Kripke, Singer, and Manners were pissed. If the strike went on any significant length of time, it was going to screw up the overall five-year plan for the show. There might have to be some details cut out, or some developments that had been planned over several months shoved into only a few episodes.  
  
The good news, if there was any, was that no one in an official capacity could revise any scripts, so if Jared, Jensen, or the director thought a scene needed reworking, the guys were free to ad lib.  
  
This could be fun.  
  
  
Two weeks into the strike, it was pretty obvious that nothing was going to be resolved soon.  
  
Jared's parents decided to fly up for Thanksgiving, since he was going to be filming most of the week and would probably only be able to take a day or two off.  
  
Jensen was sitting in Jared's trailer when Jared's mom called to confirm flight details and asked "Jensen will be there, right?"  
  
Some evil little voice deep inside Jensen smiled about the fact she didn't ask about Sandy.  
  
Jensen's parents were going to have company from out of town, so they wouldn't be able to make it, but they invited Jared and his family to come to Dallas for Christmas.  
  
  
  
The first Thanksgiving in Jared's house was amazing. Jared's mom cooked a full feast which left plenty of leftovers for Jared (and Jensen) to eat the following week. Jared's parents went out of their way to include Jensen as if was another son. Jensen and Jared ate until they couldn't eat any more, overdosed on football, and laughed at Jared's dad's stories until they had tears in their eyes.  
  
Jensen discovered that Jared had bought an extra bed and put in the basement spare bedroom for Jensen to be able to stay over, and figured it would be rude not to use it.  
  
Jared's parents had an early flight back Saturday morning. Jared and Jensen were expected on set for filming that day, so they took the Padaleckis to the airport before going to work.  
  
Jared's mom hugged both Jared and Jensen, telling them both how much she enjoyed it, and couldn't wait to see them for Christmas. Jensen shook Jared's dad's hand and thanked him for treating him like part of the family.  
  
"You are part of the family." Mr. Padalecki said. "We know how special you are to Jared, and that makes you special to us too."  
  
Jared hugged his dad, and then teased Jensen about having to change his name to Padalecki for the rest of the day.  
  
  
  
The next three weeks were some of the longest days they had filmed for Supernatural. The network was serious about filming as much as they could before the end of the year, so it was a good thing they had a couple episodes with a lot of night scenes.  
  
Many times they filmed until 9pm or later, and then had to be back on set by 6am. Much of the time, they just had the driver drop both of them off at Jared's house, and Jensen spent the night, too tired to ride the extra 15 minutes to his apartment.  
  
They were also physically demanding episodes, so the video game tournaments were pushed aside in favor of quick naps in the trailers.  
  
  
  
Finally filming wrapped for the year (For the season? No one really knew at that point.) and the guys were off to Texas.  
  
The two sets of parents seemed to instantly become best friends as much as their sons had. When Jensen commented on it to his mom, she said "Well, they love my son, and I will love anyone who loves you."  
  
Jensen's sister and brother and sister in law came, as did Jared's sister. Jared's brother and his family were spending the holiday with his in-laws.  
  
The two sisters also became friends quickly, and delighted in annoying their brothers together.  
  
They told Jared several times that since he had a house now, he might as well propose to Jensen and make it official.  
  
Jared laughed it off, and Jensen did too, but he watched for any reaction from Jared about the idea of proposing.  
  
Jensen's parents put Jared and Jensen in the same room, so it was probably a good thing neither of them had invited their girlfriends.  
  
When gifts were opened, Jared opened a box containing a picture of a pool table and a note from Jensen that they would pick it up when they got back to Vancouver, because it was too big to bring to Dallas and put under the tree. Jensen opened a box that contained a picture of Jared leaning over a pool table, with a note challenging Jensen to find out which of them was the real pool hustler.  
  
Everyone laughed about it. Jensen's sister said that it was cute they had bought each other the same thing for their house.  
  
"I don't live there." Jensen shrugged. "I just hang out."  
  
"Not yet." Jensen's brother and Jared's sister said.  
  
  
  
The night before they returned to Vancouver, Jensen wanted to ask Jared about an interview they had scheduled when they got back. Since the strike was still dragging on, the network wanted them to do as much media as possible until they were able to get back to work, to keep the show in everyone's minds.  
  
Jared wasn't in their room, or the living room, or the kitchen, or even the bathroom. He had almost given up looking when he spotted his dad sitting out on the back patio. When Jensen looked, Jared was out there as well. Just as Jensen opened the door, his dad stood, patted Jared on the shoulder, and turned to come inside.  
  
He patted Jensen on the arm as well with a smile as he walked by.  
  
"What was that all about?" Jensen asked, sitting down in the chair his dad had just left.  
  
Jared looked thoughtful. "It was weird. Your dad asked about Sandy. Then he told me that getting married is not something to be taken lightly, and that I don't have to propose just because everyone expects me too. He said if Sandy is the right person, she'll be there when I'm ready, not when everyone else thinks I'm ready."  
  
"So I guess this means you're an adopted Ackles now?" Jensen teased. "I mean, getting fatherly advice from my dad and all."  
  
"Well, you know your parents always wanted a good-looking son." Jared joked back.  
  
"My parents probably felt sorry for you." Jensen shrugged. "They've adopted several stray dogs over the years."  
  
They kept on teasing one another until Jared's sister came out and told them she hated to break up their romantic moment, but dinner was almost ready.  
  
As he fell asleep that night, Jared already snoring next to him, Jensen thought about how much he would miss these moments with Jared if he and Sandy did get married.  
  
  
  
January brought the hopeful news that there might be a resolution to the strike soon.  
  
Jared and Jensen did several media events, and then Jared announced that he was taking advantage of the break to take Sandy to Europe.  
  
"I bought a ring." He confessed to Jensen the night before they left.  
  
"Really." was Jensen's answer. "So you're going to propose in Europe? I mean, I knew you were a romantic girl, but ... "  
  
"You're not happy for me." Jared said it as a statement, rather than asked as a question.  
  
Jensen was surprised for a moment. "Well, no, I mean, it's not that I'm not happy for you. I really am. Sandy is awesome."  
  
"You're still my best friend." Jared vowed. "No matter what. Me getting engaged won't change that."  
  
But somehow the air between them already felt different.  
  
  
Jensen was the first to know.  
  
He got a quick text from Jared (" _She said yes_ ") and answered back " _Well duh_."  
  
Jared texted the next morning that they hadn't set a date yet, and probably wouldn't even announce it just yet.  
  
Jensen called Danneel and asked if he could fly down for a couple days.  
  
  
Jensen did what any best friend would do and bought Jared several gifts that were totally inappropriate for public viewing at Spencer's.  
  
Jared didn't talk much about Sandy to Jensen, but she came to Vancouver for the weekend or Jared flew down to LA to see her more often.  
  
Jensen left a toothbrush, a hairbrush, and one set of clothes in Jared's guest room, but the rest of them made their way back to Jensen's apartment.  
  
  
The strike ended in February, and within a week there was a script to shoot.  
  
Jensen figured it had probably been written during the strike, but of course it couldn't be submitted until the strike was over.  
  
On one hand, it felt good to be working again, but on the other, nothing felt like it did before.  
  
Bob Singer was set to direct the second episode back and arrived the first week to get some of his pre-production work done.  
  
He spoke to Jared and Jensen separately and together to ask what was wrong. They both said they didn't know what he was talking about.  
  
They were only able to get four episodes filmed for rest of the season to give post production and editing and special effects time to do their thing.  
  
The day after the season wrap party, Jared flew out to Texas to film _Friday the Thirteenth._  Jensen flew out the following day to film _My Bloody Valentine_.  
  
The times they saw each other over the next two months were almost all for Supernatural related media events or conventions. There were texts and phone calls, but not like the previous two summers.  
  
Then there was a text late one night.  
  
_"Sandy and I called it off."_  
  
It didn't matter that it was almost midnight his time and he was supposed to be on set at 6am. Jensen immediately dialed the phone.  
  
"Are you okay?" he asked when Jared answered.  
  
"Yeah." Jared said, and Jensen could imagine the way he nodded, even if Jensen couldn't see him. "Really, I'm better than I thought I would be."  
  
"Do you want to talk about it?" Jensen asked.  
  
"There's not much to talk about." Jared sighed. "She was pushing me to set a date, and I started thinking that I really wasn't ready. The more we talked about everything, how it would all work, the more it seemed like it wouldn't. She didn't want to move to Vancouver, and I hate flying to LA every weekend. I want to have kids. She wants to wait a few years. Just so many little things. We decided that maybe it wasn't the right time for us. Maybe we just call everything off for a while, and then if it's meant to be later on, it would all come together."  
  
"I'm glad it wasn't ugly." Jensen said. "You know I'm not Dean, right? You know if you need to come talk to me and have a chick flick moment, I'm here."  
  
Jared snorted with laughter. "Yes, Jensen. Every time I see you eat a salad I am reminded that you are not Dean Winchester. Get some sleep. I know it's late there. We'll talk more tomorrow."  
  
Jensen texted Jared eleven times the following day and talked to him on the phone twice.  
  
The back to work hug in July was the longest yet.  
  
  
The first couple days back on set were different.  
  
They had not one, but two new recurring guest stars.  
  
Genevieve was a cute, petite brunette who could have been Sandy's sister. She flirted with Jared.  
  
Misha was by far the most unique person they had ever worked with and flirted with everyone.  
  
But Jared and Jensen were _JaredandJensen_ again, which made Bob Singer smile like an idiot.  
  
  
Two days after they got back to Vancouver, Jensen got an eviction notice.  
  
His landlord had sold the building, and the new owners wanted to start remodeling right away. He had thirty days to find a new place.  
  
"Just move in with me." Jared offered. "I mean, for a while you practically lived there anyway."  
  
"You realize our sisters will never let us hear the end of this, right?" Jensen pointed out.  
  
"Fuck 'em if they can't take a joke." Jared said.  
  
"Ew. They're our _sisters_." Jensen frowned at him.  
  
"Dude. They tease us about fucking each other." Jared reminded him.  
  
"We're going to make the most of this just to mess with them, aren't we?" Jensen asked.  
  
"Absolutely." Jared agreed.  
  
  
  
Living with Jared seemed to be the most natural thing in the world.  
  
Sometimes one or the other would be tired or have a headache after work, and would want to go to his room alone.  
  
Most nights, they ate dinner together, watched tv together, played video games or guitar, or ran lines.  
  
They had been living together a little over a month when Kim Manners came back to direct the fourth episode.  Jared and Jensen loved Kim. Everyone on Supernatural loved Kim.  
  
Everyone noticed that something was different this time. Kim was quieter, and filming took a day longer than usual. No one from the network said anything about the extra day, so the guys knew something was going on they weren't aware of.  
  
The night they finished filming, Kim came to talk to them in Jensen's trailer.  
  
He thanked them for being so kind to him during his time with Supernatural. He thanked them for being devoted to the show, and for being themselves.  
  
He told them that he had cancer, and the prognosis wasn't good, so there was a real possibility that this would be the last time he would direct them.  
  
He wished them well, and told them that he hoped he would see them next year, after treatments were done.  
  
When he stood to leave, Jared hugged him.  
  
"If there's anything we can do, please let us know." Jared said.  
  
"Anything we can do." Jensen repeated, stepping up to hug the director as well.  
  
"Go out there and kick it in the ass." Kim told them with a sad smile.  
  
  
The ride home that night was eerily silent.  
  
When they got home, they sat on the couch with two glasses and a bottle of scotch.  
  
They talked about watching something Kim had directed, but the only ones Jared had were old Supernatural episodes, and neither of them were in the mood to watch themselves.  
  
"Kim came and talked to me that day we had the fight on set." Jensen said. "Back then I was so determined to keep our relationship professional and impersonal. Kim was the one who told me it didn't have to be like that."  
  
"So you're telling me that I owe him my best friend?" Jared asked, tears in his voice.  
  
"Ah, you probably would have won me over eventually." Jensen shrugged. "I mean, who can resist your puppy dog eyes?" He raised a glass. "To Kim."  
  
"To Kim." Jared agreed, clinking glasses with them.  
  
They each downed the shot in their glass, then set the glasses on the coffee table so Jared could fill them again.  
  
"I guess only the good die young, huh?" Jensen muttered.  
  
"No." Jared shook his head. "Because if that were true, you would have died a long time ago."  
  
Jensen looked up at Jared and saw a depth of emotion in his eyes Jensen had never seen before.  
  
"Come on Sasquatch." He said, tugging Jared to his feet. "Off to bed with us. We have things to do tomorrow that don't include being hung over and grouchy."  
  
Jared unexpectedly threw both arms around Jensen.  
  
"I don't know what I would do without you." Jared mumbled into Jensen's shoulder.  
  
"You had twenty-two years without me." Jensen said. "It probably wouldn't be that hard to figure out."  
  
Jared kissed Jensen's cheek before he let go. "I love you, man." he whispered.  
  
"Love you too, Jay." Jensen whispered back around the lump in his throat.  
  
He patted Jared's back as the taller man turned away.  
  
Despite Jensen's hurry to get to his own bed, he tossed and turned for hours before he finally fell asleep.  
  
  
The fact was, actually, they didn't have anything planned for the following day, so they ended up going to the driving range where they took out their frustrations on two buckets of golf balls each.  
  
The went out for steak dinner afterwards, and then bought new toys for the dogs.  
  
Nothing was said about Kim, or dying, or cheek kisses.  
  
  
Kim's illness got in Jared's head.  
  
Jared asked Jensen about his bucket list wishes. He called his parents to tell them he loved them. (“Kim is like their age, Jensen!”) And he became clingy.  
  
Jared had always been a hugger. Now he hugged Jensen a lot more, and sometimes kissed his cheek. He had always had a bit of a lack of regard for personal space as far as Jensen was concerned, but now there were times that Jensen thought if Jared got any closer he would be on the other side. Jensen knew he should call Jared out on crossing the line, but he just couldn’t bring himself to do it, knowing what a difficult time Jared was having dealing with everything.

Jared hugged Genevieve.  
  
He sometimes hugged Misha, but mostly harassed him, because Jared was still a little shit sometimes.  
  
Jensen tried to cheer him up as much as he could, even going so far as to mime a whole verse of _Eye of the Tiger_ to make Jared laugh.  
  
  
In October Jared went to the Spike TV awards while Jensen had a long day filming. Jared flew back the next day and was in makeup when Jensen got a break from filming.  
  
"So now we know why you bought the house, huh?" Shannon teased.  
  
"What?" Jensen asked, eyeing the makeup artist.  
  
"Didn't you watch him last night?" Shannon winked at Jared. "He told the world on the awards show that Jeff Morgan was his boyfriend."  
  
Jared blushed. "We were joking around and you know it." he mumbled.  
  
"You bought the house for Jeff, huh?" Jensen joked. "Maybe I should find Jeff a girlfriend so he'll leave my best friend alone."  
  
"You'll always be my favorite boyfriend." Jared mockingly vowed to Jensen.  
  
He stood, grabbed Jensen by the front of the shirt, and kissed him on the mouth.  
  
Jensen was stunned for a second, then realized he was kissing back without thinking about it.  
  
The two backed away from each other, Jared breathing hard, and looked at each other in surprise.  
  
"Enough of that!" Shannon clapped her hands to get their attention. "You guys can make out later, after we're done for the day. You," she pointed at Jared. "Get your behind back in that chair. And you," she pointed at Jensen. "Go find something to do besides smearing Jared's makeup."  
  
Jensen took one last look at Jared, whose eyes were still blown wide, and bolted from the makeup trailer.  
  
He went back to his own trailer and called Danneel, who instantly knew something weird was up. He didn't tell her what.  
  
  
The rest of the day was pretty busy, making up for the time Jared was gone.  
  
Shannon, thankfully, was not one of their more gossipy makeup artists, so the story of the kiss didn't circulate around the set like some of their other antics had.  
  
Jared and Jensen really didn't see each other again until the ride home.  
  
The ride home was somewhat quiet and subdued.  
  
When they got inside, Jensen pleaded a headache and headed downstairs.  
  
A few minutes later, his phone chirped.  
  
_Are we okay?_  
  
He sighed, knowing that he never would have gotten out of a confrontation with Jared.  
  
_Yes Jay we're fine._  
  
_Are you sure? Because tell me if we're not and I'll fix it._  
  
_It's fine. Some of us are just tired from having to work while you were off groping old men at award shows._  
  
_Okay. If you’re sure. Good night._  
  
Jensen thought about calling Danneel again, but she would have known something was up. He eventually set his phone aside, put on his headphones, and did not think about kissing Jared.  
  
  
Jared was up and had coffee made the next morning.  
  
"Did I cross a line yesterday?" he asked, handing a mug to Jensen.  
  
"Yes." Jensen said. "From now on you are not allowed to kiss me in public."  
  
"So does that mean I can kiss you in private?" Jared asked with a wicked gleam in his eyes.  
  
"You wish." Jensen snorted.  
  
  
The next week was pretty intense with shooting both physically and emotionally demanding episodes.  
  
Jared and Jensen teased each other mercilessly as one was going to have sex in this episode and the other would have sex in the next episode.  
  
Julie, who was playing Dean's current love interest, joked to Genevieve that maybe the two of them should just make out, since Jared and Jensen only had eyes for each other. Misha valiantly offered to make out with everyone to keep things fair.  
  
  
The director swapped the shooting order on Friday so that Julie’s scenes would be shot last, giving Jared and Jensen a half day off on Friday and the whole weekend off.  
  
They had thought they were going to be shooting late Friday night and possibly into Saturday morning, so they hadn’t made any plans.  
  
“What if I buy you a steak?” Jensen asked as they waited for the director to watch the playback of the last scene and make sure everything was okay.  
  
“You buy me a steak and I’ll put out.” Jared joked.  
  
The crew all laughed and wished them a good weekend.  
  
  
  
They did go out for steak dinner, and had a few glasses of wine with it. The driver stopped on the way home to let them pick up a case of beer.  
  
At home, they had decided to veg out in front of the tv with the beer.  
  
The changed into t-shirts and sweatpants, grabbed a couple beers and some chips for Jared who was unbelievably still hungry.  
  
They scrolled through channels, looking for something to watch, wondering if maybe they should have stopped to pick up a movie.  
  
“One of the Jason Bourne movies?” Jensen read off the menu.  
  
“Nah. And definitely not _The Notebook_.” Jared pointed at the tv as the next line came up. “ _Basic Instinct_. Is that any good?”  
  
“You’ve never seen it?” Jensen asked in surprise.  
  
“Dude, I was in about fourth grade when it came out. I wasn’t old enough to see it.” Jared reminded him.  
  
Jensen flicked the channel to the movie. “You have to see this at least once in your life. It’s a classic.”  
  
“A classic?” Jared asked. “Because your brother told me that your junior high school love life consisted of a VHS copy of this movie and your right hand.”  
  
“Remind me to kill him the next time I see him.” Jensen snorted.  
  
They were on their third beer each and a bit tipsy by the time Nick found Catherine in the club in the movie.  
  
Two minutes into the scene in Catherine’s apartment, Jared was shifting restlessly and Jensen realized this probably wasn’t the movie for two single men to watch together.  
  
“Um, Jay, sorry.” Jensen muttered.  
  
Then he looked at Jared.  
  
Jared’s face was flushed and his eyes were blown wide.  
  
This was nothing like watching Sam Winchester have sex.  
  
Jared’s eyes flashed dark and he licked his lips.  
  
Jensen forgot in that moment that he had never even kissed another man other than Jared. He forgot that the kiss with Jared had been a joke.  
  
He forgot all about the lines this moment was going to cross.  
  
He leaned toward Jared, who met him in the middle. Jared’s big hands cupped Jensen’s cheeks and their mouths crushed together and then Jared’s tongue was in his mouth.  
  
Jared leaned back, pulling Jensen on top of him.  
  
Jensen braced himself with one hand on Jared’s shoulder and one on the couch cushion under him, and lifted his head enough to break the kiss.  
  
Jared looked up at him, still wide eyed and panting.  
  
Jensen leaned down and kissed him again.  
  
Jared shifted his hips, grinding their cocks together through their sweatpants, and Jensen nearly saw stars.

  
They broke the kiss again, both of them breathing hard, and leaned their foreheads together.  
  
“I want to touch you.” Jared whispered.  
  
Jensen nodded, and kissed him again.  
  
Jared manhandled Jensen to one side until he could get a hand between them. He stroked Jensen through his pants until Jensen jumped and accidentally bit Jared’s lip.  
  
“Sorry.” Jensen whispered.  
  
Jared didn’t answer, he just shoved his hand into Jensen’s pants and wrapped it around Jensen’s cock, watching Jensen’s face the whole time.  
  
Jensen groaned deep in his throat, watching Jared watch him.

“You can touch me too, you know.” Jared grinned.  
  
The grin fell away as Jensen shoved Jared’s pants down and wrapped his own hand around Jared’s cock.  
  
It came back when Jensen did a double take at the sheer size of Jared’s equipment.  
  
Jared maneuvered himself to one side so that he and Jensen were lying on their sides facing one another, and began to jack Jensen in earnest.  
  
Jensen, competitive even in this moment, managed to get Jared off first.  
  
By less than a minute, however, and then Jensen was coming all over Jared’s hand and chest while Jared babbled nonsense that contained something about “so good” and “waited so long.”  
  
They kissed softly for a few moments until their breathing slowed and the mess on Jensen’s hand started cooling and congealing.  
  
So he did what any best friend would do and wiped it on Jared’s shirt.  
  
“Come on.” Jared pushed at Jensen’s chest. “Come sleep in my room.”  
  
“Dude. The dogs are probably in your bed.” Jensen said.  
  
“Okay, I’ll sleep in your room.” Jared told him, wiggling into a sitting position.  
  
Jared stripped his shirt over his head, handing it to Jensen to clean up, and pulled Jensen’s off, wiping himself on it.  
  
They pulled their pants up, and Jared took Jensen’s hand, leading him down the hall.  
  
It took several minutes of shifting positions to decide that it worked better if Jared was the big spoon. As much as Jensen wanted to curl around Jared’s back, (“I’m older, dammit!”) Jared’s hair got in his face.  
  
He fell asleep within moments, the combination of alcohol and orgasm lulling him into the best sleep he could remember.  
  
  
Jensen woke up alone.  
  
He took a shower before he went upstairs, ready for this morning to be the most awkward of his life.  
  
Somehow, it wasn’t.  
  
Jared had already showered, made coffee, and had microwaved bacon.  
  
He put a cup of coffee, milk and sugar already added, in front of Jensen, and sat down across from him.  
  
“Please don’t tell me last night was a mistake.” Jared said softly.  
  
“Jay.” Jensen sighed. “Neither one of us is gay.”  
  
“Not really.” Jared shrugged. “But I liked having sex with you.”  
  
“I liked it too.” Jensen agreed reluctantly.  
  
“Well, I’m single, and you and Danneel aren’t serious, not really, so why shouldn’t we keep doing it?” Jared asked.  
  
“Fuck. I forgot you were on the high school debate team.” Jensen shook his head.  
  
“Don’t make me pull out the Powerpoint slides and bar graphs.” Jared teased.  
  
“You know this is a bad idea, right?” Jensen said. “I mean, it things go south, if it ends badly between us, it’s going to screw up the show and put a lot of people out of work.”  
  
“Jay, we’ve been best friends right now longer than either of us has even been in a relationship with a woman,” Jared pointed out. “You’ve said that I’m stuck with you, that we will be best friends for the rest of our lives. So we just found out we’re best friends who like to make out during movies. Why should that change anything?”  
  
“You agree that we’re both mostly straight.” Jensen said. “What happens if one of us meets a woman?”  
  
“We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.” Jared shrugged. “If you met The One tomorrow, I would be happy for you. But in the meantime, I like having sex and you like having sex, and what do you know, we live in the same house.”  
  
“This is our secret.” Jensen decreed. “You and I understand each other. Letting other people in on this is what is most likely to screw it up.”  
  
“Our secret.” Jared promised, holding out his pinky.  
  
The pinky promised on it, and Jensen only hoped Jared could keep his mouth shut.  
  
  
  
  
Surprisingly, he did.  
  
Jared didn’t speak a word about their new relationship to anyone.  
  
However, Jensen was pretty sure at least a few people knew.  
  
Clif arrived to take them to work early enough Monday morning that he saw Jensen come out of Jared’s bedroom instead of up the stairs.  
  
Shannon in makeup commented that Jared had what looked like beard burn on his neck, with a speculative look at Jensen.  
  
Genevieve was strangely quiet while Misha broke into giggles several times while looking from Jared to Jensen.  
  
However, Jensen thought they did a pretty good job of controlling themselves on set, including a rule of no sex in the trailers because of the possibility of someone walking in on them.  
  
Singer, Kripke, and the rest of the upper management never called them into the office to talk, or were seen handing over bet money, so Jensen figured their secret was safe.  
  
  
  
Production was going along well enough that the powers that be decided to take the whole week off for Thanksgiving.  
  
The night before they left for Texas, Jensen was the recipient of what was probably the world’s sloppiest blow job, but when Jared looked up through his lashes and whispered “I want to make you feel good.” Jensen believed him more than anyone else who had ever said that to him in his life.  
  
They spent Tuesday through Thursday with Jensen’s family, since Jared’s brother was on duty at the hospital on Thanksgiving Day. The Padaleckis were going to have their Thanksgiving celebration on Saturday, so the guys were going to be there Friday through Sunday.  
  
There were at least two phone calls between their sisters. Both mothers acted like they were expecting some sort of announcement. Jensen’s dad commented on how they both looked happier than he had ever seen them.

  
They decided not to spend Christmas together to deflect suppositions.  
  
  
  
Jared and Jensen became suspicious that the studio might be aware of their relationship in December.  
  
Jared was scheduled to do a charity event the first week of the month, and for once there was no offer to rearrange the shooting schedule to let Jensen go with him.  
  
The following weekend, there was going to be a photography show in LA featuring some pictures of Genevieve, and Jared was asked to attend on the show’s behalf.  
  
Jared alone, not Jensen.  
  
Still nothing was said to either one of them, so they made a conscious effort to treat each other as they had in previous years as much as possible.  
  
When the show took their two week break for Christmas, Bob Singer bid them farewell with “Hope you guys have a great holiday together,” even though they had publicly announced that they were taking separate vacations to keep down the speculation.  
  
  
There was still no official acknowledgement that anything had changed from higher up on the food chain, but Jensen was sent off solo to his movie premiere in January, while Jared was dispatched to do some media interviews alone.  
  
  
The last Monday of January, the guys were awakened with a phone call from Jim Beaver that Kim had passed away.  
  
It was a somber day on set, but the schedule was too tight at the moment to cancel filming for the day. Both Jared and Jensen had appearances scheduled to promote their films, so there wasn’t time to waste with both of them in Vancouver.  
  
The cast and crew gathered after wrapping for the night to drink a toast to Kim. Jensen was pretty upset, but Jared barely held it together. He clung to Jensen’s sleeve until they got home.  
  
They held each other in the middle of Jared’s king sized bed that night, pretending the world outside their house didn’t exist.  
  
  
  
The next morning, they were called into the office.  
  
Bob Singer, Sera Gamble, and Eric Kripke were waiting.  
  
Jensen knew they were busted.  
  
Eric began the conversation with a blush. “Look, we don’t know what you two are doing away from the set, in your private time. As long as it’s not anything that affects the show, it’s really not any of our business. But some of the higher-ups with the network are concerned that the two of you are too close. They’re afraid that it _is_ going to affect the show. Especially with the episode that’s going to air next week, the one with the siren, they want the two of you seen in public with your girlfriends. They want you two to be best friends, but no question of there being anything more than that.”  
  
“Yes sir.” Jensen said softly with a nod.  
  
“I don’t have a girlfriend right now.” Jared said.  
  
“What about Genevieve?” Singer suggested. “She’s single. She’s pretty. And she’s being killed off at the end of the season, so you show up at a few events with her on your arm, and then when she’s gone, there’s always conflicting schedules to blame.”  
  
“Yes sir.” Jared agreed.  
  
“Good. Let’s please not ever have to do this again, okay?” Kripke said as he stood to shake their hands.

"So," Jared said as they walked toward makeup. "No more Gay Chicken?"

"No more Gay Chicken." Jensen agreed.  
  
  
The following week was especially quiet on set.  
  
Not only was it Kim’s memorial service, which Jared and Jensen were unable to attend due to prior commitments, but Kim had been scheduled to direct the episode they were filming.  
  
Jared and Jensen went on a double date with Genevieve and Danneel that weekend to make the network happy. Jared commented that night when he crawled into bed with Jensen that it was good thing they were all actors.  
  
On Sunday, Jared flew down to LA for the premier of _Friday the Thirteenth_. The network even asked Genevieve and Danneel to go with him, but not Jensen.  
  
Jensen had an extra long day on set Monday, and there were very conspicuously fans on site, making him wonder if someone had intentionally leaked the filming location.  
  
Jared was waiting at home when Jensen got there that night.  
  
He had already ordered takeout when Jensen had texted that he was on the way home, so they ate while they talked about Jared’s trip.  
  
After dinner, Jared took Jensen’s hand and led him to the bedroom.  
  
There were condoms and a tube of lube on the bed.  
  
Jensen looked up at Jared with the unspoken question.  
  
“I want this.” Jared whispered, wrapping his arms around Jensen.

Jensen never could say no to Jared.  
  
  
The hardest acting Jensen ever did was pretending everything was fine the day after having sex with Jared for the first time.  
  
Well, okay, technically they had been having sex for a couple months, because all the hand jobs and blow jobs did count, but the fact that he had actually been _inside_ Jared was doing a number on his head.  
  
On one hand, he was thrilled that Jared had trusted him enough to want sex with him.  
  
On another, he was terrified that somehow the network, the crew, or their families would find out.  
  
His mind was also spinning a million miles a minute. He understood what people referred to as a “gay crisis.”  
  
Six months ago, he never would have imagined that he would one day have sex with another man. Did the fact he had sex with Jared (and enjoyed it) mean he was gay now? Or at least bisexual or pansexual, (not that he even understood what that meant), or something else?  
  
What would their friends and families say if they knew?  
  
Was he cheating on Danneel, even though he and Danneel didn’t have any sort of official commitment?  
  
There was also the fact that it obviously wasn’t Jared’s first time with a man. Jensen really wanted to know the story behind that, but also so much did _not_ want to know.  
  
Jared noticed that he was quiet, and asked several times if he all right.  
  
Jensen kept saying he was, despite the fact he very much was not.  
  
Jared of course knew he was lying.  
  
  
Jared asked the minute the front door closed behind them.  
  
“Are you upset about last night?”  
  
Jensen dropped onto the couch and put his head in his hands. “I just … “ He shook his head. “I need to get my head around it.”  
  
Jared sat beside him, putting a hand on Jensen’s leg. “Do you want to tell me what you’re feeling?”  
  
“Overwhelmed, mostly.” Jensen said honestly. “Physically, I enjoyed it. Emotionally, I’m honored that you love me enough to share that experience with me. Mentally? It’s seriously fucked up my head and I need to put it all in perspective.”  
  
“Fair enough.” Jared answered, removing his hand. “Do you want to sleep in separate rooms tonight?”  
  
“No.” Jensen reached over and held Jared’s hand.  
  
  
The next night they didn’t get through with filming until after 9pm, so they came home and went straight to bed.  
  
The following day, Jared had to fly to LA to do a promo for F13, leaving straight from the set.  
  
The night Jared got home, Jensen blew him on the stairs.  
  
Bob Singer dropped by Jensen’s trailer the next day to deliver tickets for a golf tournament that weekend for Jensen and Danneel.  
  
  
  
Things onscreen were strained between Dean and Sam, and Jensen wondered sometimes if character bleed contributed to the relationship difficulties between him and Jared.  
  
If wasn’t that Jared did anything wrong. It wasn’t that Jensen did anything wrong.  
  
It was just that something felt different about their relationship, something that Jensen couldn’t quite pinpoint.  
  
He tried having anal sex with Jared again, and even tried bottoming the third time. Apparently that wasn’t the problem, because everything was good (okay, fantastic) in bed, but tense out of it.  
  
A new recurring character guest star joined them, a good-looking guy named Jake who played Dean and Sam’s unknown long lost brother.  
  
Jared flirted with him.  
  
Honestly, it shouldn’t have even been a surprise. Jared flirted a lot. Hell, he even flirted with Misha sometimes. Jared didn’t even realize he was flirting. To him it was just something that came naturally.  
  
Jensen didn’t like it.  
  
Jake, smart guy that he was, made a point of telling Jensen that he had a long-term girlfriend and wasn’t interested in Jared.  
  
Which only put more strain on the relationship, because apparently the fact that he and Jared were fucking each other was obvious to even the guest stars.  
  
  
Supernatural got renewed early for season 5.  
  
Jensen began to feel more desperate, as if he had to do something to put himself and Jared back on track before the new season started.  
  
The problem was, Jensen didn’t know what to do.  
  
The fact that the network kept suggesting more and more appearances for Jared and Jensen to make with their “girlfriends” certainly didn’t help.  
  
They took a weekend away for the two of them, a golf trip that was secretly a romantic weekend, but it didn't change anything.  
  
In fact, it got them another meeting with Kripke and Singer when one of Jensen's friends mentioned the trip to a reporter.  
  
The night they finished filming the next to last episode of the season, Jensen told Jared that he wanted to put their physical relationship on hold.  
  
“You’re still my best friend.” Jensen said. “I don’t want that to ever end. But I just need a break from the rest of it right now.”  
  
Jared nodded with a sad smile, told Jensen that he would be whatever Jensen needed.  
  
Jensen was pretty sure that Jared cried as soon as Jensen left for the airport for his weekend in LA with Danneel.  
  
  
Sunday night when Jensen came home was probably the most awkward moment of their entire relationship.

Jared smiled, asked about the trip, but didn’t offer a hug.  
  
Jensen told him it was fine, pleaded a headache, headed downstairs.  
  
Jared didn't call him out on it.  
  
  
The first scenes to be filmed Monday morning were Sam and Ruby.  
  
Genevieve smiled at Jared when he walked in, and Jensen knew.  
  
She and Jared had sex over the weekend.  
  
Jensen literally saw red for a moment, then realized that he had no right to.  
  
He was the one who told Jared that he needed a break from their relationship. Scenes from that stupid episode of _Friends_ kept popping into his head.  
  
Besides, wasn't this exactly what the network wanted? Jared hot and heavy with the right co-star, leaving behind the wrong one?  
  
Within the first hour, Jared realized Jensen knew.  
  
He came to Jensen's trailer during their lunch break.

"Jay ... " Jared started, biting his lip.  
  
"No," Jensen shook his head. "We agreed that if the right one came along, we would be happy for each other. I'm happy for you and Genevieve. Really. It just wasn't meant to be with us. We'll always be best friends, brothers even, but we always knew that we weren't gay. We knew that one day we both wanted to meet someone and have kids."  
  
"Yeah," Jared nodded. "Yeah, you're right."  
  
He turned and left, with tears in his eyes.  
  
That night, Jensen told Jared that he would find another place to live before filming started for season 5.

Jared just nodded.  
  
  
Filming for the season wrapped, but Jared and Jensen headed out to Europe and Australia for conventions. Jared brought "Gen" and Jensen brought Danneel, as the network asked.  
  
Jensen and Jared smiled and laughed on cue, showed everyone that they were still best friends who were happy for each other that they were now both in long term relationships with beautiful women.  
  
Jensen almost believed it.

Sleeping next to Danneel didn't feel anything like sleeping next to Jared.  
  
  
  
The new season began, and with it long days of filming.  
  
Jensen found an apartment within walking distance of the studio, but hardly ever actually walked to work.  
  
Jensen's parents called every week and asked what was wrong.  
  
His sister was more direct, asking flat out if Jared and Jensen had broken up. Jensen told her that they were still best friends, which was what they had always been.  
  
Gen stayed at the house, well, Jared's house, frequently.  
  
Jensen hadn't been to his former home since he moved out, and Jared had only been to Jensen's new place twice, never for longer than a few minutes.  
  
Jensen and Jared were still best friends. They still hung out on set. They still were each other's biggest supporters. To the fans and general public, nothing had changed.  
  
To Jensen, it felt as nothing would ever be the same again.  
  
Oddly, Gen and Danneel became best friends. They were nearly as close as Jared and Jensen had been the first two seasons. The two of them planned activities and photo ops, which took a strain off the guys.  
  
  
  
Jared didn't tell Jensen he bought a ring this time. The news came from Zabrina in the hair and makeup department.  
  
Jensen went and bought a ring of his own, and presented it to Danneel.  
  
She didn't say yes, not at first.  
  
She asked him about Jared.  
  
He told her the whole story.  
  
Afterwards, she said no to marrying him. She told Jensen that he was still in love with Jared, and he needed to put some closure to that situation first.  
  
He tried to tell her that he had never been in love with Jared, that they had only been best friends, sometimes with benefits. She just folded her arms and gave him the No Bullshit look.  
  
He kept asking. He did love her, really. She was the second best friend he ever had.  
  
Jared proposed to Gen and she accepted.  
  
Jensen asked again and Danneel finally said yes.  
  
Jared and Gen set a date for late February, so Jensen suggested the week after the season wrapped for his and Danneel's wedding.  
  
  
Everything was just fine except that it wasn't.  
  
Jensen and Danneel argued over everything. They never argued before.  
  
Jared was being treated for depression.  
  
The set was tense to the point Jensen understood what Kim meant about feeling like the air was going to shatter.  
  
Eric Kripke's original plan for the show was five seasons, and it began to look like he had been right. The show was just burning itself out.  
  
  
  
The most notable thing about the night everything changed was the fact that there wasn't anything notable about it.  
  
Danneel called and said that she and Gen were flying up on Friday evening.  
  
She told Jensen not to make plans.  
  
She was waiting at his apartment after work, and the first words she said were "This is not working."  
  
Jensen's blood ran cold, because those had been the exact words that had started his conversation with Jared a few months earlier.  
  
"Look, you're not happy." She continued. "I'm not happy. Jared and Gen aren't happy."  
  
"So everyone is breaking up?" Jensen asked.  
  
"No." She shook her head.  
  
"Okay," he waited for her to continue.  
  
"Jensen, I love you." She said. "There are a lot of different forms of love. I know you love me. Jared loved you enough to let you go."  
  
Jensen paused, really not sure where she was going with that.  
  
"You loved Jared enough to walk away when you thought you were hurting him. But the problem is that neither one of you can really let go. The two of you love each other too much."  
  
"Look, I told you things were over with Jared and me." Jensen said. "He and I weren't having a physical relationship when you and I became serious."  
  
"I want you to have a relationship with Jared." Danneel told him.  
  
Jensen almost fell off the couch.  
  
"You want me to cheat on you?" he asked.  
  
"Honestly, you've been cheating on Jared with me." She shrugged. "The same with Jared and Gen. You and Jared belong together. You've loved each other longer than either of you have loved us. You never told me when your physical relationship with Jared started, but I knew it because of the change in you. You were the happiest you had ever been in your life when you and Jared were together. It's a sin to waste that. I'm sorry that the network won't support you, but Gen and I will."  
  
"What are you saying?" Jensen asked.  
  
"I love you, and you love me. Jared and Gen love each other." Danneel explained. "The relationship you have with Jared is different. I've never seen anything like it, and if I could find that kind of love with someone, I would never let that person go. Gen is having the same talk with Jared right now. The two of us are willing to allow you and Jared to continue your relationship. We just ask that you come home to us occasionally. When you're with me, you're mine. But when you're with him, you're his, and Gen and I won't interfere with that."  
  
"Are you really serious about this?" Jensen said.  
  
Danneel shrugged. "All four of us want to have kids. When we each have a couple kids, what can the network say about you and Jared going off on your own for the weekend? Guy time?"  
  
"You're serious." Jensen stare at her.  
  
"Gen and I have been talking about this all week." Danneel told him.  
  
Her phone dinged. "Speak of the devil. Or demon. Whatever."  
  
She scrolled to her messages to read whatever Gen had written.  
  
"She said it's a go from Jared." She handed Jensen's shoes back, as he had already kicked them off.

"What's this for?" Jensen asked.  
  
"Put them on." Danneel said as if she were talking to a child.  
  
Once Jensen had his shoes on, Danneel retrieved his suitcase from his bedroom, obviously packed and ready to go.  
  
"Where are we going?" Jensen asked.  
  
"Get in the car if you want to find out." She picked up her jacket and Jensen's keys.  
  
She drove him to the Rosewood Hotel and handed him a room key.  
  
"The Lord Stanley Suite, twelfth floor." She said. "Take your time. Gen and I will just go max out your credit cards or something." She winked before driving away.  
  
Jensen took the elevator up to the twelfth floor, where he found Jared standing in the hallway outside a room door.  
  
"Is this for real?" Jared asked.  
  
"Let's find out." Jensen opened the door, and the two of them walked into the hotel's second most expensive and exquisite suite.  
  
There was a bottle of champagne chilling in the ice bucket beside the bed, with a plate of chocolate covered strawberries on the table at the foot of the bed.  
  
On the bed was a box of condoms and two bottles of lube.  
  
"They went through a lot of trouble to put all this together." Jared said, a gleam in his eye. "It would be a shame to let all this go to waste."  
  
"It really would." Jensen agreed.  
  
"So what are we going to do?" Jared asked. "I mean, about us, long term. Not about fucking because I'm pretty sure we're going to do that in a few minutes."  
  
"I guess we just play it by ear, and hope their plan works?" Jensen said.  
  
Jared leaned down and kissed Jensen softly. "I love you, you know. I've loved you from the first moment we met at auditions."  
  
"You didn't even know me then." Jared protested.  
  
"But I know you now, and I love you that much more." Jared said. "And so help me, if you call me a girl, I won't suck your dick this weekend."  
  
Jensen opened the bottle of champagne and poured each of them a glass.  
  
"To us." he offered a toast. "You and me, come whatever, and never letting go of each other again."  
  
Jared clinked glasses.  
  
"We might have to let go sometimes." He said. "You know, going to the bathroom, narrow doorways... "  
  
"You're an idiot." Jensen snorted.  
  
"I'm your idiot." Jared corrected.  
  
"You are definitely my idiot." Jensen smiled before leaning up to kiss him.  
  
  


**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Artwork for Lines in the Sand by dragonflybeach](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14730188) by [millygal](https://archiveofourown.org/users/millygal/pseuds/millygal)




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